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So, You Ready to Submit...
Your book is done and you have decided to go the route of traditional publishing. Excellent! Are you ready? You’ve researched a number of literary agents or agencies that are interested in genre and you are ready to submit. Or are you?
Before you make that jump, you should have some other documents other than you precious manuscript ready. As anxious as you are to throw your masterpiece to the world of avid readers, this might take some time.
Query Letter: A business letter that introduces your book and yourself to the agent or publisher. This is a one page piece that has to be done to perfection, because it’s your only chance to make an impression. In the letter, you need to create a hook that will cause the agent to want nothing more than to read you story. To learn how to write the perfect query, I would suggest Literary Agent Janet Reid’s Query Shark Blog. Ms. Reid shows you both the good and the bad of query writing. Expect to spend a considerable amount of time perfecting your letter. It is crucial that it’s perfect.
Synopsis – Long and Short: This is considered the most hateful documents you’ll ever have to write. The synopsis is a complete summary of your novel, including the ending. This shows the agent or publisher that the plot and character arc is complete and the ending makes sense. There are number of resources that will help you deal with this chore. I would recommend Jane Friedman’s Blog .
Author’s Bio: This of course is about you. Your fans want to know. The Bio should be written in third person and should show something that the fans will find interesting. Do race cars, love dogs or have a family. Make it personal. Check out your favorite books for examples.
Tweeter Pitch: Describe you book in 140 characters. There are a number of Pitchfests held annually that allow you to pitch your novel through twitter. If an agent sees something they might be interested in, they will hit the “heart” or “like” button. If they do, it is an invite to submit your manuscript, following their submission requirements, thus avoiding the multitude which is called the slush pile.
Blurb: A blurb is a two to three sentence summary of your book. It is like the other documents, in that it should have a hook. You want people to hear it and beg you to read your story.
Before you set yourself on the road to find publication, you’ll need these documents. When you find the agent or publisher you wish to submit your novel, you will have to follow their submission requirements, which will ask for some of these documents. Follow their submission requirements to the letter and be professional and courteous. If you do receive a request for more of your work, give yourself a pat on the back. If you do not, do not write the agent back to complain or argue. These agencies receive over a thousand requests for representation a week, so they only take the best and what will sell.
To help speed up the process, I would recommend have a selection of your story broken down into the most requested sizes. I have been asked for five pages, ten pages, fifty pages, and one and three chapters. These should all be double spaced.
It’s a lot of work, but well worth it.
